Spring guide and suspension device

ABSTRACT

A spring guide includes: a mounting portion formed so as to be depressed, the rubber sheet being fitted to the mounting portion; and a plurality of lock pieces formed to stand at an outer periphery of the mounting portion. At least one of the plurality of the first lock pieces and the second lock piece is disposed at a position that restricts deformation of a circumferential end portion of the rubber sheet to an outside in a radial direction, in a state where the rubber sheet is fitted to the mounting portion.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a National Phase International ApplicationNumber PCT/JP2016/060478, filed Mar. 30, 2016, and claims priority basedon Japanese Patent Application No. 2015-072913, filed Mar. 31, 2015.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a spring guide and a suspension device.

BACKGROUND ART

JP2012-219825A discloses a suspension that includes a coil spring, aspring receiving member, and a spring rubber sheet. The coil spring isexternally mounted on a shock absorber. The spring receiving membersupports a lower end part of this coil spring and is fixed to a middleportion of the shock absorber. The spring rubber sheet is interposedbetween this spring receiving member and the lower end part of the coilspring.

At the suspension described in JP2012-219825A, two positioning holes forpositioning the spring rubber sheet are disposed at a ring portion ofthe spring receiving member.

The spring rubber sheet is formed into an approximately C shape, and hasa seating portion on which the lower end part of the coil spring isconfigured to be seated from a starting end portion to a terminating endportion in a circumferential direction. This seating portion has a lowerportion at which two positioning protrusions are disposed. The twopositioning protrusions are for positioning the spring rubber sheet withrespect to the ring portion of the spring receiving member at theproximity of the starting end portion and the proximity of theterminating end portion.

At the suspension described in JP2012-219825A, by fitting thepositioning holes of the spring receiving member to the protrusions ofthe spring rubber sheet, the spring rubber sheet is positioned withrespect to the spring receiving member.

SUMMARY OF INVENTION

When the coil spring contracts, stress acts on the lower end portion ofthe coil spring toward an outside in a radial direction. Since thespring rubber sheet is formed into the approximately C shape (arcshape), rigidity is low. In view of this, if the stress acts on from thelower end portion of the coil spring toward the outside in the radialdirection, an end portion in the circumferential direction of the springrubber sheet possibly deforms toward the outside in the radialdirection. At this time, it is difficult for the above-describedpositioning protrusions to surely suppress the deformation of the springrubber sheet.

The present invention has been made in view of such technical problem,and it is an object of the present invention to provide a spring guideand a suspension device that ensure restriction of deformation to anoutside in a radial direction of a rubber sheet formed into an arcshape.

According to a certain aspect of the present invention, the spring guideincludes a mounting portion and a plurality of lock pieces. The mountingportion is formed so as to be depressed. The rubber sheet is fitted tothe mounting portion. The plurality of lock pieces are formed so as tostand at an outer periphery of the mounting portion. At least one of theplurality of lock pieces is disposed at a position that restrictsdeformation of a circumferential end portion of the rubber sheet to anoutside in a radial direction, in a state where the rubber sheet isfitted to the mounting portion.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a partial cross-sectional view of a suspension deviceaccording to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a partial perspective view of the suspension device accordingto the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a spring guide according to theembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a plan view of the spring guide according to the embodiment ofthe present invention.

FIG. 5 is a view illustrating a change of a depth of a seat surface ofthe spring guide according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a rubber sheet according to theembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a plan view of the rubber sheet according to the embodiment ofthe present invention.

FIG. 8 is a view illustrating a state where the rubber sheet has beenmounted on the spring guide according to the embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 9 is a partial cross-sectional view taken along the line I-I inFIG. 8.

FIG. 10 is a partial cross-sectional view taken along the line II-II inFIG. 8.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

The following describes a rubber sheet 10 and a suspension device 100according to an embodiment of the present invention with reference tothe attached drawings.

First, with reference to FIG. 1, the suspension device 100 in which therubber sheet 10 according to the embodiment of the present invention isincorporated will be described.

The suspension device 100 is a device, which is mounted on an automobile(not illustrated), that positions a wheel (not illustrated) andgenerates damping force to absorb impact and vibration received from aroad surface during the vehicle running and stably suspends the vehiclebody.

The suspension device 100 includes a strut-type shock absorber 1, anupper mount 2, a spring guide 3, a coil spring 4, a bump stopper 5, abump cap 6, and a dust boot 7. The shock absorber 1 is disposed betweenthe vehicle body and the wheel. The upper mount 2 is mounted on a distalend of a piston rod 1 a of the shock absorber 1. The spring guide 3 ismounted on an outer peripheral surface of a cylinder 1 b of the shockabsorber 1. The coil spring 4 is disposed between the spring guide 3 andthe upper mount 2. The bump stopper 5 is fitted into the piston rod 1 ato restrict stroke at a shrinkage side of the shock absorber 1. The bumpcap 6 is a capping member fitted into an end portion at the piston rod 1a side of the cylinder 1 b. The dust boot 7 is a pipe-shaped covermember that protects the piston rod 1 a.

The cylinder 1 b has an end portion at the opposite side of the pistonrod 1 a. At this end portion of the cylinder 1 b, a bracket 1 c forcoupling a hub carrier (not illustrated) that holds the wheel to theshock absorber 1 is disposed. The shock absorber 1 is coupled to thevehicle body by the upper mount 2 and is coupled to the hub carrier bythe bracket 1 c to be assembled on the vehicle. The shock absorber 1constituted as described above is configured to generate the dampingforce when the piston rod 1 a moves in an axial direction (the verticaldirection in FIG. 1) with respect to the cylinder 1 b. The suspensiondevice 100 quickly damps the vibration of the vehicle body by thisdamping force of the shock absorber 1.

The coil spring 4 is sandwiched between the upper mount 2 and the springguide 3 in a compressed state to bias the shock absorber 1 in anextending direction. Between the upper mount 2 and the coil spring 4, anupper-side rubber sheet 8 is disposed. This keeps the upper mount 2 fromnot directly abutting on the coil spring 4. Between the spring guide 3and the coil spring 4, the arc-shaped rubber sheet 10 is disposed. Thiskeeps the spring guide 3 from not directly abutting on the coil spring4.

The following describes the spring guide 3 with reference to FIG. 1 toFIG. 4.

The spring guide 3 is a metallic dish-shaped member fixed to an outerperiphery of the cylinder 1 b for supporting the coil spring 4. Thespring guide 3 includes an opening 30, a protrusion 31, anannular-shaped mounting portion 32, an annular-shaped outercircumference 33, and an annular-shaped support wall 34. The opening 30is for inserting the cylinder 1 b. The protrusion 31 is formed toproject to the upper mount 2 side so as to surround the opening 30. Themounting portion 32 is formed to surround the protrusion 31 and to havean arc groove 38 to which the rubber sheet 10 is fitted. The outercircumference 33 is formed at an outside in a radial direction of themounting portion 32. The support wall 34 extends from the outercircumference 33 to the upper mount 2 side to be formed to surround theouter circumference 33.

As illustrated in FIG. 1 and FIG. 4, when the spring guide 3 is fixed tothe outer periphery of the cylinder 1 b, the opening 30 is formed to beat a position eccentrically to the vehicle body side from the center ofthe spring guide 3. The spring guide 3 is fixed to the outer peripheryof the cylinder 1 b by welding the opening 30 to the outer periphery ofthe cylinder 1 b. At the opening 30, a plurality of cutouts 30 a aredisposed. The cutout 30 a functions as a drainage when water or the likeis accumulated in the spring guide 3.

As illustrated in FIG. 1 and FIG. 3, the protrusion 31 is formed toproject to the upper mount 2 side (the upper side in FIG. 1). Theprotrusion 31 is formed into an arc shape such that both end portions ina circumferential direction are positioned to the vehicle body side,when the spring guide 3 is mounted on the outer periphery of thecylinder 1 b.

The mounting portion 32 is formed into an annular shape so as to bedepressed with respect to the outer circumference 33. The mountingportion 32 has the arc groove 38 to which the rubber sheet 10 is fitted.The arc groove 38 is formed as an arc-shaped groove between theprotrusion 31 and the outer circumference 33. As illustrated in FIG. 4and FIG. 5, the arc groove 38 is formed such that a depth of the groovedeepens toward a center portion (position b) in the circumferentialdirection positioned at the wheel side, in other words, the depth of thegroove shallows toward both end portions (position a and position c) inthe circumferential direction positioned at the vehicle body side.

At the arc groove 38, a plurality of engaging holes 39 are formed. Withthe engaging holes 39, protrusions (not illustrated) formed on a bottomsurface of the rubber sheet 10 are engaged. This engagement of theprotrusions of the rubber sheet 10 with the engaging holes 39 preventsdisplacement of the rubber sheet 10 against the spring guide 3.

The arc groove 38 further includes two first lock pieces 35 and a secondlock piece 36 that are formed by standing at the outer periphery. Thefirst lock pieces 35 and the second lock piece 36 are formed such thatU-shaped slits are formed at the spring guide 3 and parts surrounded bythese slits are folded to the upper mount side. The first lock pieces 35and the second lock piece 36 are formed to project to the upper mount 2side with respect to the outer circumference 33, that is, such that aheight from a bottom surface of the arc groove 38 is higher than asidewall. Each of the two first lock pieces 35 is formed at a positionopposed to a vicinity of an end portion in a circumferential directionof the rubber sheet 10, in a state where the arc-shaped rubber sheet 10is fitted to the arc groove 38. The second lock piece 36 is formed at aposition opposed to a vicinity of a center portion 11 b in thecircumferential direction of the rubber sheet 10, in the state where thearc-shaped rubber sheet 10 is fitted to the arc groove 38. Thus, in thestate where the rubber sheet 10 is fitted to the arc groove 38, even ifload to the outside in the radial direction acts on the rubber sheet 10in accordance with extension and contraction of the coil spring 4, theouter periphery of the rubber sheet 10 abuts on the first lock pieces 35and the second lock piece 36. Thus, movement to the outside in theradial direction is restricted. Accordingly, the first lock pieces 35and the second lock piece 36 prevent the displacement to the outside inthe radial direction of the rubber sheet 10. It should be noted that, atthe part where the depth of the arc groove 38 is shallow, it isdifficult to restrict the deformation of the rubber sheet 10 by thesidewall of the arc groove 38. Accordingly, forming the first lockpieces 35 at the end portion in the circumferential direction where thedepth of the arc groove 38 is shallow can effectively restrict thedisplacement (the deformation) of the rubber sheet 10.

At the protrusion 31, the mounting portion 32, and the outercircumference 33, a plurality of through-holes 37 are formed. Thethrough-hole 37 functions as a punched portion for weight reduction, andfunctions as a drain hole when water or the like is accumulated in thespring guide 3.

The following describes the rubber sheet 10 with reference to FIG. 2,and FIG. 6 to FIG. 10.

The rubber sheet 10 is made of a material having elasticity such asrubber. The rubber sheet 10 includes a main body 11, an arc-shapedseating portion 12, a stopper portion 13, and a deformation restrictingportion 14. The main body 11 is formed into an arc shape to be fitted tothe arc groove 38 of the spring guide 3. The seating portion 12 isformed into a groove shape at the main body 11. The coil spring 4 isseated on the seating portion 12. The stopper portion 13 is formed atone end portion in the circumferential direction of the main body 11,and abuts on an end surface of a terminal portion 4 a of the coil spring4 to restrict movement of the coil spring 4. The deformation restrictingportion 14 is formed to project outside in the radial direction from theouter periphery of the main body 11 at an end portion 11 a of the mainbody 11. The end portion 11 a supports the terminal portion 4 a of thecoil spring 4.

As illustrated in FIG. 9, the seating portion 12 is formed such that itscross-sectional surface curves along a cross-sectional shape of the coilspring 4.

At the rubber sheet 10, the main body 11 is fitted to the arc groove 38of the spring guide 3 at a part at which the deformation restrictingportion 14 is not formed, and the main body 11 and the deformationrestricting portion 14 are fitted to the arc groove 38 of the springguide 3 at a part at which the deformation restricting portion 14 isformed. In a state where the rubber sheet 10 is fitted to the arc groove38 of the spring guide 3, the main body 11 and the deformationrestricting portion 14 of the rubber sheet 10 abut on a bottom surfaceof the arc groove 38. It should be noted that the rubber sheet 10 mayhave a shape where only the main body 11 is fitted to the arc groove 38and the deformation restricting portion 14 is abutted on the outercircumference 33 without being fitted to the arc groove 38.

The rubber sheet 10 further includes an inner-peripheral-side lip 15 andan outer-peripheral-side lip 16 at an inner periphery and the outerperiphery. The inner-peripheral-side lip 15 is formed to project insidein the radial direction from a side surface at the inner peripheral sideof the main body 11. The outer-peripheral-side lip 16 is formed toproject from a side surface at the outer peripheral side of the mainbody 11 and an outer periphery of the deformation restricting portion14. The inner-peripheral-side lip 15 is disposed throughout the wholecircumference at the inner peripheral side of the main body 11. In thestate where the rubber sheet 10 is fitted to the arc groove 38 of thespring guide 3, the inner-peripheral-side lip 15 abuts on the protrusion31 so as to cover the protrusion 31 from above, and theouter-peripheral-side lip 16 abuts on the outer circumference 33 so asto cover the outer circumference 33 from above (see FIG. 9). Thus, evenif the coil spring 4 extends and contracts to create a clearance betweenthe main body 11 of the rubber sheet 10 and the arc groove 38 of thespring guide 3, the inner-peripheral-side lip 15 and theouter-peripheral-side lip 16 have abutted on the protrusion 31 and theouter circumference 33 of the spring guide 3 so as to cover theprotrusion 31 and the outer circumference 33 from above respectively.This can prevent a foreign matter or the like from invading between themain body 11 of the rubber sheet 10 and the arc groove 38 of the springguide 3. It should be noted that, by forming the inner-peripheral-sidelip 15 and the outer-peripheral-side lip 16 inclined to the protrusion31 and the outer circumference 33 sides, the inner-peripheral-side lip15 and the outer-peripheral-side lip 16 are pressed to and abutted onthe protrusion 31 and the outer circumference 33. Thus, even if the mainbody 11 of the rubber sheet 10 deforms, the clearance is less likely tooccur between the inner-peripheral-side lip 15 and the protrusion 31,and between the outer-peripheral-side lip 16 and the outer circumference33. Accordingly, this can further prevent the foreign matter or the likefrom invading between the main body 11 of the rubber sheet 10 and thearc groove 38 of the spring guide 3.

As illustrated in FIG. 9 and FIG. 10, the rubber sheet 10 furtherincludes a rising portion 19 disposed upright on the inner peripheralside of the main body 11. The rising portion 19 is formed as standingupright from a portion at which the inner-peripheral-side lip 15 of themain body 11 is disposed toward the upper mount 2 side. The risingportion 19 is disposed throughout the whole circumference at the innerperiphery of the main body 11.

As illustrated in FIG. 6 to FIG. 8, at the outer-peripheral-side lip 16,cutouts 18 are formed at positions opposed to the first lock pieces 35of the spring guide 3. At the outer periphery of the main body 11, acovering portion 17 as covering the second lock piece 36 is formedintegrally with the outer-peripheral-side lip 16 at a position opposedto the second lock piece 36 of the spring guide 3. Disposing thecovering portion 17 can prevent the foreign matter or the like frominvading between the main body 11 of the rubber sheet 10 and the arcgroove 38 of the spring guide 3 through the second lock piece 36. Itshould be noted that, instead of the cutouts 18, covering portions ascovering the first lock pieces 35 may be disposed at the positionsopposed to the first lock pieces 35 of the outer-peripheral-side lip 16.The outer-peripheral-side lip 16 may be omitted. Furthermore, thecovering portion that covers any of the first lock pieces 35 and thesecond lock piece 36 may be engaged with any of the first lock pieces 35and the second lock piece 36.

The rubber sheet 10 is positioned with respect to the spring guide 3such that protrusions (not illustrated) formed on a surface abutting onthe arc groove 38 are engaged with the engaging holes 39 of the springguide 3, and the cutouts 18 and the covering portion 17 are engaged withthe first lock pieces 35 and the second lock piece 36 of the springguide 3 respectively. Then, the rubber sheet 10 is fitted to the arcgroove 38.

Typically, at the suspension device, large load acts on the wheel sidecompare with the vehicle body side. If the terminal portion 4 a of thecoil spring 4 is arranged at a position that receives such large load,large load locally acts on the end portion 11 a of the rubber sheet 10that supports the terminal portion 4 a of the coil spring 4, and thespring guide 3. In view of this, at the suspension device 100, theterminal portion 4 a is arranged at a position apart from the wheel side(inside the vehicle body) (see FIG. 2) such that a part other than theterminal portion 4 a of the coil spring 4 receives the large load asdescribed above. By arranging the coil spring 4 as described above, thelarge load can be received at a long area (the part other than theterminal portion 4 a) of a wire rod in the coil spring 4 at the wheelside. Since a large load is not locally acted on the rubber sheet 10 andthe spring guide 3, it is possible to prevent the rubber sheet 10 andthe spring guide 3 from being damaged. Furthermore, at the terminalportion 4 a, the load that acts on the end portion 11 a of the rubbersheet 10 via the terminal portion 4 a of the coil spring 4 is reduced.Thus, the end portion 11 a of the rubber sheet 10 becomes less likely todeform.

The following describes actions of the first lock pieces 35 and thesecond lock piece 36 of the spring guide 3.

When the coil spring 4 contracts, large load acts on the rubber sheet 10toward the outside in the radial direction. As described above, sincethe rubber sheet 10 is formed into the arc shape, the rigidity is low.In view of this, if the load acts on from the lower end portion of thecoil spring 4 toward the outside in the radial direction, end portions11 a, 11 c in the circumferential direction of the rubber sheet 10attempt to deform toward the outside in the radial direction. However,though the end portions 11 a, 11 c in the circumferential direction ofthe rubber sheet 10 attempt to deform toward the outside in the radialdirection, the end portions 11 a, 11 c abut on the first lock pieces 35of the spring guide 3. Thus the deformation to the outside in the radialdirection is restricted. Furthermore, though the center portion 11 b inthe circumferential direction of the rubber sheet 10 attempts to deformtoward the outside in the radial direction, the center portion 11 babuts on the second lock piece 36 of the spring guide 3. Thus thedeformation to the outside in the radial direction is restricted.

The following describes an action of the deformation restricting portion14 of the rubber sheet 10.

When the wheel vibrates in a vertical direction, for example, byunevenness of the road surface during the vehicle running, the shockabsorber 1 and the coil spring 4 of the suspension device 100 extend andcontract in accordance with vertical motion of the wheel. When the coilspring 4 contracts, large load acts on the terminal portion 4 a of thecoil spring 4 toward the outside in the radial direction. If the largeload acts on the terminal portion 4 a of the coil spring 4, stress todeform the rubber sheet 10 as twisting toward the outside in the radialdirection acts on the end portion 11 a of the rubber sheet 10. Thedeformation restricting portion 14 is formed to project outside in theradial direction from the outer periphery of the main body 11 to abut onthe arc groove 38 of the spring guide 3. Thus, the deformationrestricting portion 14 restricts the deformation of the rubber sheet 10as twisting toward the outside in the radial direction, against the loadfrom the coil spring 4.

If the load in the radial direction acts on the rubber sheet 10 inaccordance with the extension and contraction of the coil spring 4,friction resistance occurs between the main body 11 of the rubber sheet10 and the arc groove 38 of the spring guide 3. Furthermore, since thedeformation restricting portion 14 of the rubber sheet 10 abuts on thearc groove 38 of the spring guide 3, in addition to the frictionresistance between the main body 11 of the rubber sheet 10 and the arcgroove 38 of the spring guide 3, friction resistance will also occurbetween the deformation restricting portion 14 and the arc groove 38.Accordingly, even if the load in the radial direction acts on the rubbersheet 10, displacement of the rubber sheet 10 on the spring guide 3 canbe further prevented.

The spring guide 3 is, as described above, formed such that the opening30 is positioned eccentrically to the vehicle body side from the centerof the spring guide 3. As illustrated in FIG. 1, the spring guide 3 ismounted such that the vehicle body side is lowered compared with thewheel side. Thus, it is necessary to dispose the cutout 30 a for drainat the vehicle body side. In view of this, at the spring guide 3, it isdifficult to ensure a width in the radial direction at the vehicle bodyside at the mounting portion 32. Thus, it is not easy to deepen thedepth at the vehicle body side of the arc groove 38. As described above,the terminal portion 4 a of the coil spring 4 is arranged at the vehiclebody side (inside the vehicle body). Thus, in the state where the rubbersheet 10 is fitted to the arc groove 38, the end portion 11 a in thecircumferential direction of the rubber sheet 10 that supports theterminal portion 4 a of the coil spring 4 will be positioned near an endportion (position c in FIG. 4) at which the groove depth of the arcgroove 38 of the spring guide 3 is shallow. Thus, when the end portion11 a of the rubber sheet 10 is positioned at the position at which thedepth of the arc groove 38 is shallow, a sidewall of the arc groove 38cannot support the end portion 11 a of the rubber sheet 10. Accordingly,the end portion 11 a becomes likely to deform as twisting toward theoutside in the radial direction. However, the rubber sheet 10 restrictsthe deformation of the rubber sheet 10 as twisting to the outside in theradial direction against the load from the coil spring 4, since, asdescribed above, the deformation restricting portion 14 is formed toproject outside in the radial direction from the outer periphery of themain body 11 to abut on the arc groove 38 of the spring guide 3.

In such configuration, when the end portion of the rubber sheet 10receives the load from the terminal portion 4 a of the coil spring 4,the end portion of the rubber sheet 10 becomes likely to be removed fromthe arc groove 38. However, as described above, the deformationrestricting portion 14 of the rubber sheet 10 abuts on the arc groove 38of the spring guide 3, and the friction resistance occurs between them.This can prevent the end portion 11 a of the rubber sheet 10 from beingdisplaced to be removed from the arc groove 38.

The following describes an action of the rising portion 19 of the rubbersheet 10.

When the wheel vibrates in the vertical direction, for example, byunevenness of the road surface during the vehicle running, the shockabsorber 1 and the coil spring 4 of the suspension device 100 extend andcontract in accordance with vertical motion of the wheel. At this time,the coil spring 4 attempts to slide in the radial direction so as toescape to a direction on which the load does not act. At this time, thelower end portion of the coil spring 4 is seated on the seating portion12 of the rubber sheet 10. Thus, the displacement in the radialdirection of the coil spring 4 is restricted by the protrusion 31 of thespring guide 3 via the main body 11. However, when the depth of the arcgroove 38 is not sufficiently ensured, in other words, when a height ofthe protrusion 31 is not sufficiently ensured, the protrusion 31 cannotrestrict the displacement in the radial direction of the coil spring 4.In view of this, the rubber sheet 10, as described above, includes therising portion 19 disposed upright on the inner peripheral side of themain body 11. Thus, even when the height of the protrusion 31 is notsufficiently ensured, the rising portion 19 supports the inner peripheryof the coil spring 4 to ensure the restriction of the displacement inthe radial direction of the coil spring 4.

According to the above-described embodiment, the following describedeffect is provided.

At the spring guide 3, in a state where the rubber sheet 10 is fitted tothe mounting portion 32, the first lock pieces 35 are formed. The firstlock pieces 35 are disposed at positions that restrict the deformationto the outside in the radial direction of the end portions 11 a, 11 c inthe circumferential direction of the rubber sheet 10. Thus, even if thecoil spring 4 contracts, and then the large load acts on the endportions 11 a, 11 c in the circumferential direction of the arc-shapedrubber sheet 10 toward the outside in the radial direction, the endportions 11 a, 11 c in the circumferential direction abut on the firstlock pieces 35 of the spring guide 3, the deformation to the outside inthe radial direction can be restricted. Furthermore, even if the centerportion 11 b in the circumferential direction of the rubber sheet 10attempts to deform to the outside in the radial direction, the centerportion 11 b abuts on the second lock piece 36 of the spring guide 3,the deformation to the outside in the radial direction can berestricted.

The following describes the configuration, the action, and the effectaccording to the embodiment of the present invention as a whole.

The spring guide 3 supports the coil spring 4 via the rubber sheet 10.The coil spring 4 elastically supports the vehicle body. The rubbersheet 10 is formed into the arc shape. The spring guide 3 includes themounting portion and the plurality of lock pieces (the first lock pieces35 and the second lock piece 36). The mounting portion is formed so asto be depressed. The rubber sheet 10 is fitted to the mounting portion.The plurality of lock pieces (the first lock pieces 35 and the secondlock piece 36) are formed to stand at the outer periphery of themounting portion 32. At least one of the plurality of lock pieces (thefirst lock pieces 35 and the second lock piece 36) is disposed at theposition that restricts the deformation of a circumferential end portion11 a, 11 c of the rubber sheet 10 to the outside in the radialdirection, in the state where the rubber sheet 10 is fitted to themounting portion 32.

In this configuration, though the end portions 11 a, 11 c in thecircumferential direction of the rubber sheet 10 attempt to deformtoward the outside in the radial direction, the end portions 11 a, 11 cabut on the lock pieces (the first lock pieces 35) of the spring guide3. Accordingly, this can restrict the deformation to the outside in theradial direction of the end portions 11 a, 11 c in the circumferentialdirection of the rubber sheet 10.

At least another one of the plurality of lock pieces (the first lockpieces 35 and the second lock piece 36) is disposed at a positionopposed to the center portion 11 b in the circumferential direction ofthe rubber sheet 10, in the state where the rubber sheet 10 is fitted tothe mounting portion 32.

In this configuration, when the center portion 11 b of the rubber sheet10 deforms toward the outside in the radial direction, at least one ofthe plurality of lock pieces (the first lock pieces 35 and the secondlock piece 36) abuts on the center portion 11 b of the rubber sheet 10.This can restrict the deformation of the center portion 11 b of therubber sheet.

The suspension device 100 includes the spring guide 3, the shockabsorber 1, the upper mount 2, the coil spring 4, and the arc-shapedrubber sheet 10. The shock absorber 1 is disposed between the vehiclebody and the wheel. The spring guide 3 is mounted on the outerperipheral surface of the shock absorber 1. The upper mount 2 is mountedon the distal end of the rod (the piston rod 1 a) of the shock absorber1. The coil spring 4 is disposed between the spring guide 3 and theupper mount 2. The rubber sheet 10 is disposed between the spring guide3 and the coil spring 4.

In this configuration, the spring guide 3 is applicable to thesuspension device 100.

The rubber sheet 10 includes the main body 11 and the covering portion17. The main body 11 is fitted to the mounting portion 32 to support thecoil spring 4. The covering portion 17 is formed at the outer peripheryof the main body 11 to cover at least one of the plurality of lockpieces (the first lock pieces 35 and the second lock piece 36), andengaged with this lock piece (the first lock pieces 35 and the secondlock piece 36).

In this configuration, at the rubber sheet 10, the covering portion 17that covers at least one of the plurality of lock pieces (the first lockpieces 35 and the second lock piece 36) is engaged with at least one ofthe plurality of lock pieces (the first lock pieces 35 and the secondlock piece 36). This can position the spring guide 3 and the rubbersheet 10.

The rubber sheet 10 includes the main body 11, the lip (theouter-peripheral-side lip 16), and the cutout 18. The main body 11 isfitted to the mounting portion 32 to support the coil spring 4. The lips(the outer-peripheral-side lip 16) are formed to project from therespective side surfaces of the main body 11 in the radial direction,and abut on the spring guide 3 to prevent the foreign matter frominvading between the main body 11 and the mounting portion 32. Thecutout 18 is formed at the lip (the outer-peripheral-side lip 16) to beengaged with at least one of the plurality of lock pieces (the firstlock pieces 35 and the second lock piece 36).

In this configuration, the lip (the outer-peripheral-side lip 16) abutson the spring guide 3 to prevent the foreign matter from invadingbetween the main body 11 and the mounting portion 32. By engaging atleast one of the lock pieces (the first lock pieces 35 and the secondlock piece 36) with the cutout 18 formed at the lip (theouter-peripheral-side lip 16), positioning of the spring guide 3 and therubber sheet 10 can be ensured.

The mounting portion 32 has the arc groove 38 to which the rubber sheet10 is fitted. The arc groove 38 is formed such that the depth deepenstoward the center portion in the circumferential direction, and isformed such that the center portion in the circumferential direction ispositioned at the wheel side.

In this configuration, the arc groove 38 is formed such that the centerportion at which the depth of the arc groove 38 is deepest is positionedat the wheel side. At the suspension device 100, since the large loadacts on the wheel side, the center portion at which the groove isdeepest can receive the large load. Thus, the spring guide 3 can surelysupport the rubber sheet 10 and the coil spring 4.

At least one of the plurality of lock pieces (the first lock pieces 35and the second lock piece 36) is formed at the outer peripheral side ofthe end portion in the circumferential direction of the arc groove 38.

In this configuration, the lock pieces (the first lock pieces 35) areformed at the end portion in the circumferential direction at which thedepth of the arc groove 38 is shallow. At the part at which the depth ofthe arc groove 38 is shallow, it is difficult to restrict thedeformation of the rubber sheet 10 by the sidewall of the arc groove 38.Accordingly, by forming the lock pieces (the first lock pieces 35) atthe end portion in the circumferential direction at which the depth ofthe arc groove 38 is shallow, the deformation of the rubber sheet 10 canbe effectively restricted.

Embodiments of this invention were described above, but the aboveembodiments are merely examples of applications of this invention, andthe technical scope of this invention is not limited to the specificconstitutions of the above embodiments.

For example, the inner-peripheral-side lip 15 and theouter-peripheral-side lip 16 may be disposed only at positions where theclearance is likely to occur. Furthermore, the deformation restrictingportion 14 may have a certain clearance with the arc groove 38 insofaras the deformation restricting portion 14 can abut on the arc groove 38.In this case, the deformation of the rubber sheet 10 will be allowed tosome extent. Furthermore, the arc groove 38 may be constituted as anannular-shaped groove. For example, a stiffener may be buried at thedeformation restricting portion 14.

This application claims priority based on Japanese Patent ApplicationNo. 2015-72913 filed with the Japan Patent Office on Mar. 31, 2015, theentire contents of which are incorporated into this specification.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A spring guide that supports a coil springvia a rubber sheet, the coil spring elastically supporting a vehiclebody, the rubber sheet being formed into an arc shape, the spring guidecomprising: a mounting portion which is depressed, the rubber sheetbeing fitted to the mounting portion; and a plurality of lock piecesstanding at an outer periphery of the mounting portion, wherein themounting portion has an arc groove to which the rubber sheet is fitted,the arc groove has a depth which deepens toward a center portion of thearc groove in a circumferential direction of the arc groove, at leastone of the plurality of the lock pieces is formed at an outer peripheralside of an end portion of the arc groove in the circumferentialdirection, the depth of the arc groove at the end portion beingshallower than at the center portion, and a height of the lock piece,which is disposed at the end portion of the arc groove in thecircumferential direction, from a bottom surface of the arc groove ishigher than a height of a sidewall of the arc groove from the bottomsurface.
 2. The spring guide according to claim 1, wherein at leastanother one of the plurality of lock pieces is disposed at a positionopposed to a center portion of the rubber sheet in the circumferentialdirection, in a state where the rubber sheet is fitted to the mountingportion.
 3. A suspension device, comprising: the spring guide accordingto claim 1; a shock absorber disposed between a vehicle body and awheel, the spring guide being mounted on an outer peripheral surface ofthe shock absorber; an upper mount mounted on a distal end of a rod ofthe shock absorber; the coil spring disposed between the spring guideand the upper mount; and the arc-shaped rubber sheet disposed betweenthe spring guide and the coil spring.
 4. The suspension device accordingto claim 3, wherein the rubber sheet includes: a main body fitted to themounting portion to support the coil spring; and a covering portionformed at an outer periphery of the main body to cover at least one ofthe plurality of lock pieces, and engaged with the lock piece.
 5. Thesuspension device according to claim 3, wherein the rubber sheetincludes: a main body fitted to the mounting portion to support the coilspring; lips projecting from respective side surfaces of the main bodyin a radial direction, and abut on the spring guide to prevent foreignmatter from invading between the main body and the mounting portion; anda cutout formed at the lip to be engaged with at least one of theplurality of lock pieces.
 6. The suspension device according to claim 3,wherein: the center portion of the arc groove in the circumferentialdirection is positioned at a side of the wheel.
 7. The spring guideaccording to claim 1, wherein the spring guide includes U-shaped slits,and parts of the spring guide surrounded by the U-shaped slits andfolded from the bottom surface of the arc groove define the lock pieces.